That’s Entertainment
Local amenities for local people were very limited when the Saff was originally built. Gardening at home, going to the cinema, and walks in the countryside were therefore popular. There was also a boathouse and a Japanese Garden at Aylestone, just a short walk away.
Two Working Men’s Clubs were founded in the first decade of the estate's life. These were the Aylestone and District WMC on Saffron Lane, and the Saffron Lane Estate WMC, which started in the front room of a founding member before opening on Duncan Road in 1929.
The Saffron Lane Estate WMC was very important to local families. It offered cheap beer, organised trips and outings, and a range of clubs including fishing, horticulture, and chess clubs. One member later reminisced that,
“For people on the estate, it was somewhere you could take the kids. There was a children’s room, they had a big lawn at the back as well…lots of good things went on there. It was the best charity on the estate as well. If you were poor and your children needed shoes, you could get them on the club – the ‘Boot and Shoe Fund’”.
The Saffron Lane WMC closed its doors during the mid-2010s, ending an institution that had been at the heart of the community for nearly a century.
Going for Gold
The new estate had an abundance of green spaces for the Saff locals to participate in sport. Elston Fields, nicknamed “Tick-Tock Park” due to having a clock tower in its centre, had cricket and football pitches.
“Tick Tock Park was presided over by Tom the ‘Parkie’. Tom kept us in order. A small tubby jovial man with a bristly moustache, he could be seen daily tramping round the park, picking up discarded paper with a spiked rod. Tom was in charge of the pavilion”.
Later additions to the area were the Saffron Lane Sports Centre, and the Aylestone Leisure Centre, which replaced the old swimming baths and opened as a sports centre in 1988.
National Cycling Championships 1996 at Saffron Lane Velodrome
The Saffron Lane sports centre opened on 6 May 1967, and featured a 440-yard running track and an asphalt cycling track. The centre has hosted numerous competitions, including the athletic events for the Special Olympics in 1989 and Great Britain National Games in 2009.
With cycling proving immensely popular, a separate 3,100-seat Leicester Velodrome was constructed to host the track events of the 1970 World Cycling Championships.
The Leicester Velodrome was the national track for twenty years, hosting both national and world championships. It also saw several world records, including Chris Boardman taking eight seconds off the 5,000m world record on 22nd August 1992.